The Topeka Sizzlers, originally the Kansas City Sizzlers, were a professional basketball team based in Kansas City, Missouri from 1985 to 1986 until they relocated to Topeka, Kansas where they played from 1986 to 1990. The Sizzlers were members of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA).
Bernard Glannon purchased a new CBA franchise on June 28, 1985 which he nicknamed the "Sizzlers". During their first and only season in Kansas City the team played their home games at Municipal Auditorium. Citing the over-saturated sports market in Kansas City, Glannon re-located the Sizzlers to Topeka, Kansas before the 1986–87 season. The team used Lee Arena on the campus of Washburn University while construction of Landon Arena was completed.
A group of 14 investors led by married business partners Jim & Bonnie Garrett purchased the Topeka Sizzlers from Glannon before the 1988–89 season. The Garretts put the team up for sale during the 1989–1990 season. A group of investors led by Sacramento, California attorney Robert Wilson purchased the Sizzlers and re-located them to Washington. The Yakima Sun Kings, as the Topeka franchise would become known during the 1990–91 season, went on to win several CBA championships during their 18-year existence.
A lawsuit was filed by the Garretts in 1991 alleging Glannon misrepresented the value of the Sizzlers franchise. The Shawnee County, Kansas District Court jury who heard the original case sided with Glannon and a judgement was issued in his favor for the remainder owed to him by the Garretts ($205,000). The Kansas Court of Appeals upheld the jury's judgment in 1992.
History
Kansas City (1985–86) Kansas City businessman Bernard Glannon announced on June 27, 1985 that he had worked out a deal to purchase an expansion franchise in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) for $500,000. CBA owners approved the expansion franchise, named the "Sizzlers", during a conference call vote on June 28 following two weeks of negotiations between Glannon and CBA president Jim Drucker.
The Kansas City Council unanimously approved a five-year lease of Municipal Auditorium by the Sizzlers in July 1985. The auditorium was the home of the Kansas City Kings who had relocated to Sacramento, California following the 1984–85 National Basketball Association (NBA) season.
During the first CBA college draft in 1985 the Sizzlers were awarded the first overall pick. They selected guard Regan Truesdale from The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina. On August 5, 1985 the CBA held an expansion draft for the Sizzlers. The 13 other CBA franchises were able to protect five of the 13 players on their rosters. Bill Ficke was hired to be the Sizzlers head coach from the 1985–86 season.
By November 1985 the Sizzlers had sold over 1,400 season tickets according to The Sacramento Bee. The Los Angeles Daily News reported that Kansas City was acting as the Los Angeles Lakers farm team. After the Lakers cut center Earl Jones, head coach Pat Riley told the Daily News that if Earl cleared waivers then he would sign with the Sizzlers "where he can keep a hand in with us".
The Sizzlers' home opener in December 1985 at Municipal Auditorium drew an attendance of 7,012, which at the time was the seventh largest crowd in CBA history. After nine home games the Sizzlers were averaging an attendance of 3,186, which was second in the CBA.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) filed a lawsuit against Sizzlers owner Bernard Glannon in January 1986 for his alleged delinquent payment on a loan for his defunct venture, the Indian Springs State Bank, which was eventually revealed to have dealings with organized crime members. Glannon claimed that the FDIC had only filed the lawsuit on his behest to settle.
During a game on January 8, 1986 Danny Salisbery of the Detroit Spirits made a CBA record 70-foot shot to beat the third quarter buzzer against Kansas City.
On January 9, 1986 the Sizzlers acquired center Petur Gudmundsson from the Tampa Bay Thrillers. By the end of January the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) ruled that Gudmundsson, a citizen on Iceland in the United States on a H-1 visa, was ineligible to work in country and had to cease playing for the Sizzlers. Kansas City argued that Gudmundsson was exempt from INS rules on employment due to the specialty of his profession, but the INS ultimately rejected that argument. INS District Director Ron Sanders said that for Gudmundsson to be classified as "an alien of distinguished merit and ability" he would have to be in the NBA, not the CBA.